


One More

by reifromrfa



Category: The Haunting of Hill House (TV 2018)
Genre: Angst, Episode 5, F/M, Fluff, Romance, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-13
Updated: 2018-11-13
Packaged: 2019-08-23 03:14:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16610822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reifromrfa/pseuds/reifromrfa
Summary: Nell's thoughts during the scene in 1x05 where she danced with Arthur in Hill House.





	One More

_This isn’t real._  
  
The dark-haired woman slips on the dress anyway. A part of her…some part of her knows this is not possible. But the illusion is easier to face than reality right now.  
  
As Nell walks down the stairs, she feels as though she is floating. Familiar faces greet her and her heart is brimming with happiness; this is what she always wanted. Her family…together again.  
  
She passes by her sisters dressed in their bridesmaids gowns. Her brother…her father. Her beautiful mother. God, her mother. The smile on her face chases away all thoughts of ghosts and nightmares. The smile grows bigger when she sees her beloved twin, standing before her in his groomsman suit.  
  
This. This was the wedding she wanted. Everything was perfect. Almost perfect.  
  
Luke gives her a smile as he steps aside…  
  
And the world just stops.  
  
Because there he is. The love of her life. The man her heart beats for.  
  
 _ **Oh heavenly day…**_  
  
The young woman’s face crumbles. She could not stop her shoulders from shaking, her smile fighting against the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes.  
  
“Hi, gorgeous.” He says it so casually, so easily that if you didn’t know him, you’d think Arthur is picking up a random girl at a bar. But no…his eyes are fixed on her, on the young woman standing in front of him. The words are for her, for the one he loves. He doesn’t know how his words affect her, how a simple ‘hi gorgeous’ makes her heart beat erratically against her chest. When he says it, there is no hesitation in his eyes, and no apology on his lips —he says those words to let her know that even if she is broken, she is still the most beautiful person alive, the most gorgeous woman to ever walk the earth…to ever walk into his life and all over his heart.  
  
 _ **All the clouds blew away…**_  
  
There is a clear path to him. And God, she needed to pull herself together but she doesn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. She takes a deep breath and manages out a soft, “Hey.”  
  
Arthur reaches out a hand to her, looking as handsome as ever in that blue suit, his shiny silver tie and the pretty white flower pinned to his coat.  
  
The tears win and Nell is hit with all the pain she’s been harboring. There is a massive hole in her soul, a hole he carved out when he left her. The missing part of her that belongs to him. She steps forward, hand tentatively reaching out to his, half afraid he would disappear, half excited to become whole once again.  
  
 ** _Got no trouble today with anyone…_**  
  
She slips her fingers into his and she feels his warm touch, his firm grip as he gently tugs her to him. Nell can’t take her eyes off him, even as she slips a hand on his shoulder and they adjust their grip on each other.  
  
“I’ve missed you,” Arthur tells her.  
  
 _Arthur. My Arthur._  
  
The youngest amongst the siblings still can’t believe he’s here. When Nell closes her eyes though, he ducks his head and presses his forehead against hers.  
  
“So much,” her lover continues. Nell can’t stop her sobs from escaping, she feels so much and right now, being in his arms, inhaling his scent…it’s as though they were back to the night of their wedding, only now it’s just the two of them. Yes. Just the two of them…and Nell’s family, watching over them, witnesses of their love.  
  
“I’ve…m-m-missed…y-you.” Nell chokes out through her sobs. Arthur slips his other arm around her waist, slowly beginning to sway them both.  
  
“I know.” There he goes again, unapologetically melting her heart with his words…but it’s okay. Her heart is already his. Nell knew from that first visit that he would become someone important to her someday…and boy, did he change her life. Everything changed for the better since Arthur took her for coffee. “I know.”  
  
 _ **The smile on your face…I live only to see…**_  
  
Nell’s fingers clasp his suit tightly as he closes his lips over hers, a kiss that’s been long overdue. A kiss she longs for every day and every night. She lets him take the reins, lets her lover lead her body through the dance. Because she’s too focused on him. The shape of his lips on hers. The feel of his touch, the stark contrast of their skin. His clothes. His voice. His eyes. Everything about him.  
  
Arthur pulls away and grins, gaze only her as he takes her across the room and through the arched hallway. Nell loved his smile. She could look at that smile all day.  
  
 _ **It’s enough for me, baby.**_  
  
She is entranced by him, by this moment. There are no words to describe how happy she is. It feels like she’s been trapped in a nightmare for so long. When he came into her life, the shadows all disappeared…and even when they returned, he chased them away with his light. And when he passed…he took that light with him. Nell was lost, grasping in the dark for God knows how long.  
  
But now he’s here. He’s back. Her light. Her love.  
  
 _ **Oh heavenly day…Heavenly day…Heavenly day.**_  
  
 _Please…please don’t let this end. I need you, Arthur. I love you._  
  
 _ **Tomorrow may rain with sorrow…**_  
  
Nell knew in her heart that she can face any monster. As long as she had him by her side. A part of her knows…struggles to remember…that this isn’t real. The pain will be back, the hollowness. The empty space on their bed.  
  
But…  
  
 _ **Here’s a little time we can borrow…**_  
  
 _For now, let me have this day. This moment. With him._  
  
He twirls her around and everything is just…perfect. Dream-like. The way he looks at her makes her feel like she isn’t so fucked up, like she’s a normal girl, the perfect girl for him. There is no one else like her Arthur.   
  
**_Forget all our troubles in these moments so few._**  
  
 _So please…don’t leave me. Stay with me in this moment, baby._  
  
He takes her back into the main hall, surrounded by their loved ones and their spectators. They take each other’s hands and circle each other, not daring to look away. Because how can you look away from your soulmate?  
  
 _ **All we’ve got right now, the only thing that, all that we really have to do…**_  
  
Nell’s smile lights up her face, her whole being. It’s as though she is glowing, her happiness at being reunited with her love filling her. Arthur twirls her around one more time and they step closer to each other. Her expression is filled with love, adoration.  
  
 _One more dance…one more song…I will keep asking for one more of everything. If I get to be with you like this, then please…one more day. One more._  
  
Arthur’s face draws closer. Nell can feel his breath tickling her cheeks. She closes her eyes and feels his lips against hers. Kissing her softly…gently. Claiming her. She tilts her face up and tastes him, the man whose love was so great that each day with him was filled only with happiness.  
  
She feels his lips stop moving. For a moment, she thought…maybe —just maybe. Maybe the heavens would grant her one more day…just this once...  
  
 _ **Is have ourselves a heavenly day...**_  
  
…but when she opens her eyes, he is gone once more…and she is alone again, with nothing but the shadows and the hollowness in her soul to keep her company.

 

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